1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally but not exclusively to toy projectile launchers, and in particular to a mechanism which will hurl substantially intact “slugs” of fluid through the air.
2. Description of the Prior Art
From the dawn of time, humans have sought to create devices to launch solid projectiles. These devices were originally used for survival in hunting, attack, and defense. They may by now be a part of the human psyche. As such, projectile launchers are an eternally popular child's toy.
In one prior art variant of such toys, a gun-like launcher supports one or more projectiles, which are launched either through a spring-loaded launching mechanism or an air pressure driven launching device. The projectiles have enjoyed equally varied shapes and have included ping-pong balls, foam resilience balls, lightweight missiles and foam bodied arrows or missiles. Exemplary of such prior art solid projectile launchers are those described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,892,081 (1990) issued to Moormann and U.S. Pat. No. 4,694,815 (1987) issued to Moormann.
Many prior art water launchers also exist. The toy industry is highly competitive, and hundreds of different water launchers have been developed over the years in an attempt to profit from the toy's inherent popularity. However, in the prior art, the water launched has never appeared to be a solid, compact projectile. Instead, the shape of the water launched has fallen into one of three basic categories. The first category is a continuous stream of water interrupted periodically, such as that produced by the basic Squirt Gun. The second category launches an elongated, broken, or irregular mass of water, similar to the pattern produced by throwing water from a cup or bucket. Lastly, there are devices which launch a plurality of droplets. No toy device has, as yet, launched a slug of water which is so substantially free of accompanying droplets that it resembles a stone flying through the air.
One example of the “continuous stream” launcher is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,074,437 (1991) of D'Andrade, et al. In this device, air pressure is built up and stored by a pumping action, and then selectively used to pressurize stored water. When the trigger is activated, the movement of the pressurized water through the narrow nozzle produces a stream of propelled water. This stream continues while the trigger is engaged, and ceases when the trigger is disengaged or when the driving pressure of the water equals atmospheric pressure. A second example of the “continuous stream” launcher is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,433,646 (1995) of Tarng. This device automatically interrupts the water stream at a substantially high frequency, without requiring recycling of the trigger.
An example of the “irregular mass of water” launcher is found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,339,987 (1994) of D'Andrade. This invention provides a triggered mechanism for controlled flow with a bursting release of water. The shape of this burst is elongated, irregular and consists of multiple sub-packets of water.
An example of the “multiplicity of droplets” launcher is provided by U.S. Pat. No. 5,662,244 (1997) of Liu, et al. This patent states that “The present invention provides the popular advantages of traditional water guns, but projects a water charge that may be in the form of a burst or shower of water that is more likely to land on the intended target without the need for precision in aiming.”
While the foregoing described prior art devices have provided some measure of enjoyment and amusement for the user, they have disadvantages, and there remains a continuing need in the art for ever more interesting and improved launchers. Some disadvantages of the prior art for solid projectile launchers are:                (a) Solid projectiles are easily lost, thus rendering the launcher useless or limited in play value.        (b) Solid projectiles must be retrieved, thus interrupting play.        (c) Solid projectiles can cause pain or injury upon impact.        (d) Solid projectiles add additional manufacturing cost to the toy.        
On the other hand, prior art water launchers cannot launch water as a discrete, compact, visibly recognizable “slug”. In play, this presents the following disadvantages:                (a) A child has difficulty pretending he or she is launching a solid object such as a stone or bullet.        (b) The launched water provides no sensation of being struck by an object, and no satisfying “thud” upon impact.        (c) Because it does not resemble a discrete projectile, the water launched by prior water launchers is not well suited to traditional target games.        